Takin' the Yellowhead Pt. 1

I love my sister, Jen. She's so fun. And you don't have to talk much because she takes care of that for you.

So a couple of months ago, she calls me and mentions that she's coming down from Edmonton to Vancouver for a wedding with her mother-in-law. The catch is that she would have to drive back to Edmonton by herself. Would I be interested in driving back with her, hanging out in The Chuck for a few days and then maybe fly home.

So, on Tuesday we packed up the car and began our road trip. Work-wise, it is the absolute worst timing, but I have so needed a break. I think you could see that from my earlier posts. I was starting to go crazy with work and a little holiday was becoming far too necessary.

We drove first to Kelowna for one night (Sorry, Tex, that I didn't call in again) to see my grandparents. My grandfather is in the late stages of Alzheimer's Disease in a care home and Jen hadn't seen him for almost 2 years. My grandmother lives alone now so she was tickled pink to have us stay with her.

My grandfather is 94 and on previous visits he recognized me. But, this time he was really confused. It's so hard to see someone who was so vibrant and active in life (he was a forest fire fighter and at 50 years old could outrun 25 year olds) be confined to a wheelchair and not be able to make his brain work right. When I told him our names and who our dad was (his son), he just looked confused and then haltingly said, "I... I can see... but... you try to... but you can't make it work." He was almost ashamed that he recognized that he should know us, but couldn't remember why and just couldn't put the pieces together.

As we were leaving, he left us with some parting wisdom. "I do know that three things are really important: 28, 29 and 30." He then paused and finished with, "but sometimes 27." If it wasn't so sad, I'd probably laugh a bit more.

My grandmother is 95. She's starting to forget things, too. But, I can't really fault her that when I see how old she is. She's about 4'11" and the daughter of Irish parents. She's very fun, but definitely not as spry as I remember her from my childhood.

When we arrived, she made us some tea and I noticed her kettle didn't shut off. So, Jen and I went to the store and bought her a new electric kettle and brought it back. Mostly we were concerned that she'd boil it dry one day and start an electrical fire. But, how do you tell your grandmother, "Look, Grandma, we think you'll forget about the kettle one day because you're old and forgetful." And what if she really, really liked the old kettle for sentimental reasons?

As we opened the box, she was rather ecstatic. "Oh, how nice! I never liked that old kettle anyway." Ok, then...

Jen and I had this fantastic dinner at a lakeside hotel and it was so beautiful out. We had wine and coffee and watched the sun begin to set and talked about stories that I know I've told my grandmother several times before. I don't know how many more of these times I'll get with her and I know that it was very special for Jen and I.

These two people are the only grandparents I have. My mom's parents died when she was in her teens. So I only have stories. These two people are living have a special and interesting place in my heart and I have some great and not-so-great memories of them. It's these times that I'll remember most when they both are gone.

The next day... it was on to Edmonton...

Coffee Table Books

I'm about to fall asleep on my feet, but I love what I do. I just wanted to say it in case anyone thought I was complaining too much.

I'm designing a company retrospective book for a local firm and I'm really excited about it. I get to work with some wonderful people on it and it feels so much like what I need to do for the rest of my life. So, I will.

I think that some of the work activities I'm involved in could end up being distractions in the future, but I've made commitments that I can't back out of. At the same time, I'm also excited about what I'm building in those activities. But, I can honestly say that I'm a designer and I cannot forget that. I'm forging ahead to put worthy people into the Limelight.

Optimism

I have an optimism for this week that I can't readily justify yet... but I suppose that's what optimism is, right? I could so easily tack over to pessimism, but I'm not really geared that way. Not to say that I can't be pessimistic. I just naturally lean toward optimism -- it's so much healthier for the stomach and the shoulders and the brain.

Last week was completely crazy. But, while one half of my working world seemed to be in flames, another was getting wings. In the end all of the crappiness with work will disappear as problems get resolved, but it's so heartening when good news comes in the middle of crisis.

I know this isn't terribly detailed. There's just some things that are better left unsaid on a blog for many reasons... most of which are legal reasons. I don't relish losing business or getting sued by saying something I would regret later.

*****

The sermon today was about suffering. The book has been I Peter and suffering is the theme. But I had some revelations today about the life of faith that I have chosen.

When I chose to follow Christ, I began a journey that was about endeavoring to be more Christ-like. That meant (and still means) striving for righteousness and being like the Father. When I lived as an unbeliever (which I did for a while), I could do whatever I wanted and there was hardly a decision to be made. I just lived for myself, doing exactly what I wanted to do.

When I decided again to follow Christ, I made a commitment to live differently. To do so involves sacrifice -- I no longer got to live for just myself; I was choosing to live as Someone else told me to live. That's not easy and most of the time I fail miserably at it.

This denial of the easy life -- the seemingly innate way of doing things -- is a form of suffering. It's hard. I may even be abused for it by those around me. I may even hate it. But, it's a choice. It's a choice to live right instead of easy.

If I ever hear another evangelist say something to the effect of following God makes life wonderful and... whatever.... I'm going to vomit. This life of following Christ is hard. It's not easy and very often not fun. But it is right. It is true.

Paris Hilton Fans Devastated by Ruling

Get a life, people.

Tired, exhausted, sleepy...

Work has been hectic. I think I must sound like a broken record to many of friends when I tell them how busy and crazy work is and how much time I'm putting in. And there are no sick days.

I could have taken one yesterday, that's for sure. I was talking with my friend Jordan today and he was saying how much it sucks that when you're not feeling well, you can' t just take the day off when you're self-employed. Well, you can. It just means that the work doesn't get done and you're probably worse off than before in having to catch up! I was in complete agreement with his observation. Then I said, "I guess we've made our choice, though." And I have made the choice.

I like the flexibility. I like the variety of the work. I like being involved in my livelihood. But, this week HAS been nuts. I think I've had about 3-4 hours sleep on average for the past 5 nights. And I don't even have children!

I'm tired. I'm exhausted. I'm sleepy. But, I like what I do. It's exciting. It's stressful. But, it's rewarding.

Well, back to work.

Days like this...

Lately I've had to put in a lot of middle of the night sessions for one of my companies. I don't like doing this. I'm tired. I need to pack up my house. I need to get some work done. None of that is happening lately.

However, I had an amazing weekend of sunshine and heat in the Okanagan. I was at a family wedding and I got to sit by the lake, soak up some sun, visit with uncles, aunts, cousins, grandparents... it was good.

Stuff You May Not Know About Me

Damn you, Amanda!! Tagging me with this crazy quiz!!

Every now and I then I wander over to the blog of my good friend, Amanda Regier. The other day she has this post about stuff I didn't know about her.

"Cool," I think to myself! "Let's read the things I don't know about Amanda!!"

Then I get to the end and she's tagged me. Damn. Here's how it works:

1: Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves.
2: People who are tagged, write a blog post about their own 8 random things, and post these rules.
3: At the end of your post you need to tag 8 people and include their names.
4: You may need to leave them a comment and tell them they’re tagged, and to read your blog

1. There Really Are People I Genuinely Do Not Like
I know this is hard to believe, but it's true. "But," you say to yourself, "Sam, you get along with everyone! What are you saying?" Well, my dear, I'm saying that I'm a highly skilled actor who is also adept at politics. I can smile at you, but I may not even like you.

Wow, this has started off really, really mean! Let's keep going!!!!

2. I Almost Exclusively Read Mystery Fiction In My Spare Time
I can't help it. My mother got me into it at a young age and I can't stop. And it's not just any mystery fiction. I have about 3 or 4 authors I like and their books are the only ones I read. These authors have a way with dialogue and characters that is really insightful -- it makes for good reading. Of course, only having 3 or 4 authors to read means that I've read many of the same books many, many times over. And I still like reading them again!

3. I'm Now A Sort-of Anglican
I've recently been attending an Anglican church. And I love it. I even went to the Newcomer's Lunch a few weeks ago. I don't know if there's some sort of blood rite I have to do to not be "sort-of" anymore, but I'll probably do it soon.

4. My Secret Ambition Is To Be A Radio DJ
When I was a kid, my sister and I would pretend to be DJs on the radio by having a blank tape in the recording side of the dual tape deck. I would have all my music tapes queued up to the songs I wanted to play on my radio station (Radio K-I-R-K. Snappy, huh?), put them into the play-only side and then I would turn the external mic on and off to do my segues into and out of songs. As I grew up, I loved morning drive-time radio and I wondered what it would be like to host my own show. Maybe I'll start doing podcasts. The only thing now is that I don't know what I would do my show on if I was to become a DJ! Stupid growing up!

5. I'm a Complete Chicken When It Comes to Girls
I know I come across as confident and well-assured. But, I'm really not when it comes to asking girls out. So, if you're a girl and I asked you out on a date at some time in my life, then count yourself really lucky that I actually got the courage up to do that. Or not.

6. I Miss Being a Musician and an Actor
Not enough to actually drop everything and start getting my chops back, but enough that I get a bit jealous when I go to concerts or plays where friends I used to play/act with (and who, quite frankly, I was way better than at one time) are on stage. Part of me wants to be loved by all and I want you to love me while I'm on stage!! It's one of my tragic flaws. If this was Shakespeare, the play of my life would end with me getting killed by my bastard step-child/half-brother while giving my final, yet most amazing, performance in front of the whole world.

7. I Smoke... About Half a Pack a Day
A few of you know I smoke. Some of you may have no clue. I love smoking. I'm addicted. But, I'm getting older and my intellect is starting to win out the battle from my nervous system and I'm soon going to quit. I don' t have a day picked yet. That would be too organized.

Taking a cue from Amanda, my last one has something to do with public exposure.

8. My Friends Drove Away As I Was Peeing On the Side of Hwy 1 Near Swift Current, SK
This may not sound like a big deal, but you know that once the seal is broken you can't stop the waterworks and moving in mid-flow wasn't really an option. Needless to say, I had to continue standing where I was (very near the side of the road) with my Block & Tackle (or whatever you may call it) exposed while I finished my business with cars roaring by one early summer morning as I was driving home from Regina. I was 16. Funnily enough, I wasn't that embarrased. I laughed pretty hard, to tell you the truth.

Well, that does it for me. Now I need to pick 8 people to pass this on to. Hmmm...

I pick Seth, Jamie, Eric, Joy, Kara, Christina, Laura, & Jim.